Crowberry ( Empetrum nigrum )

Fruit Warehouse | Crowberry ( Empetrum nigrum ) | Species of crowberry include: E. nigrum (Crowberry), E. eamesii (Rockberry), E.rubrum and E. hermaphroditum. All are evergreen mat forming shrubs, with small, light green needle-like leaves 3-10 mm long. The flowers are small and plain looking. This tribe does share a number of distinctive morphological features, the which seem to be associated with wind pollination.

 

Crowberry (Empetrum) is a small genus of dwarf evergreen shrubs bear edible fruit That. They are commonly found in the northern hemisphere, from temperate to subarctic climates, and also in the Southern Andes of South America and on the South Atlantic islands of South Georgia, the Falklands and Tristan da Cunha.

After waning popularity, the crowberry is regaining its reputation as an edible berry. The high concentration of anthocyanin pigments can be used as a natural food dye. The Inuit and Native Americans mix them with other berries, especially the blueberry. Cooking enhances the flavor. The leaves and stems are used in Dena'ina medicine for diarrhea and stomach problems; They are boiled or Soaked in hot water, and the strained liquid drunk. Some claim the berry juice is good for kidney trouble.

In Dena'ina plantlore in the Outer and Upper Inlet area of Lake Clark, the root is also used as a medicine, being used to remove a growth on an eye and to heal the evening eyes. Crowberries contain mostly water. The acidity is lower than is Typically encountered in forest berries, and benzene acids are almost absent. Crowberries are also occasionally grown as ornamental plants in rockeries, Notably the yellow-foliage cultivar Empetrum nigrum 'Lucia'